The 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup opened in St. Petersburg on Saturday with a match, in which the Russian national team defeated New Zealand 2:0

ST. PETERSBURG, June 18. /TASS/. The Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA) has sold 65% of the tickets for matches of the 2017 Confederations Cup, Director General of Russia’s Organizing Committee Alexei Sorokin said on Sunday.

The senior Russian football official spoke at a conference of the Russian Football Union (RFU) in St. Petersburg.

"We are at the level of 65% of tickets sold. We hope that this figure will increase as the tournament proceeds further," Sorokin said.

The 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup opened in St. Petersburg on Saturday with a match, in which the Russian national team defeated New Zealand 2:0.

The fan-ID system has been successfully tested at the 2017 Confederations Cup first match, Sorokin said.

"We now have a system of fan identification and it passed a successful test yesterday. There were no glitches. It gives the right to a visa-free entry and also a ride for free," Sorokin said.

Fans need to formalize and get a fan-ID to get to 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup matches. To this end, they need to fill in a questionnaire with passport data and attach a photo on the website fan-id.ru and get the document by post or at an issuance center at one of the Russian cities hosting the 2017 FIFA Confederation Cup matches.

Along with a ticket, a fan ID gives the right to attend a match and also to get to the venue of the match for free, using special trains shuttling between the tournament’s cities and the city’s public transport for the match, for which the ticket has been bought.

The FIFA Confederations Cup is viewed by experts as a rehearsal for the organizers, with only one year to go to the FIFA World Cup.

This year’s tournament is held between June 17 and July 2 at four stadiums in Russia and they are Spartak Stadium in Moscow, St. Petersburg Stadium, Fisht Stadium in Sochi and the Kazan Arena in Kazan.